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Want vs Need for new Graphics Card

tctuner1

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I am looking to purchase my first Graphics card. I have a 4-5yr old PC with a i7 processor, 8GB RAM, 460w PSU, and a 1080p 60hz monitor. I am not a huge gamer, but go in spurts where if I find one I like I will play for hours and then not play again for months. I have not made a budget yet, but will say that it will probably be at most $350. I will probably need a new PSU for the bigger cards, so realistically $300 and under. I do not plan to upgrade every year, so I want a card that will last at least 4yrs and still look better than current console games. AMD vs Nvidia does not matter to me. I know what I want, but I want to make sure I am not going overboard with what I actually need.
 

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What powersupply is it? you could get away with that one assuming it is a good quality unit and you don't have a shit ton of mechanical drives.

GTX 970/980/AMD290(x)/390(x) would be good for 1080P.
 

tctuner1

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What powersupply is it? you could get away with that one assuming it is a good quality unit and you don't have a shit ton of mechanical drives.

GTX 970/980/AMD290(x)/390(x) would be good for 1080P.
It is just the stock PSU that came with my Dell XPS 8500. Some people that I have talked to said that anything greater than a GTX960 would require me to upgrade, so I am basing it off of that information.
 

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It is just the stock PSU that came with my Dell XPS 8500. Some people that I have talked to said that anything greater than a GTX960 would require me to upgrade, so I am basing it off of that information.



That is card only wattage peak during gaming. Should give you an idea the Dell units aren't the best OEM and I would suggest upgrading it to something in the 500w bronze category. They aren't that expensive and will have a good enough 12v to support a decent card.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150730&cm_re=380_4gb-_-14-150-730-_-Product

380 4gb and get a good high quality psu that is at least 750w so its good enough for crossfire later on. never a waist of money to get a gold rated psu.
you would more than blow away a console on a 1440p freesync monitor

It's an only Dell XPS highly doubtful crossfire is a concern. A quality 500w is more than enough
 
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i was just thinking about the future. more realistically a 1080p freesync and then crossfire later to fill in higher refresh and shred ultra.

ya def would need a upgrade to a new i5 and decent crossfire motherboard.

i mean either go big with a upgrade path or just get a 750ti that shouldnt have trouble with the psu thats being used already.. if its just some light gaming.
 

tctuner1

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i was just thinking about the future. more realistically a 1080p freesync and then crossfire later to fill in higher refresh and shred ultra.

ya def would need a upgrade to a new i5 and decent crossfire motherboard.

i mean either go big with a upgrade path or just get a 750ti that shouldnt have trouble with the psu thats being used already.. if its just some light gaming.
So your pick would be a 750ti? Would that last me 4yrs or so? The reason I need to upgrade is because I just bought Fallout 4 and my current graphics card cannot play this at all. I want to be able to play games like this for the next 4 yrs or so without having to upgrade every time a new game I like comes out.
 
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So your pick would be a 750ti? Would that last me 4yrs or so? The reason I need to upgrade is because I just bought Fallout 4 and my current graphics card cannot play this at all. I want to be able to play games like this for the next 4 yrs or so without having to upgrade every time a new game I like comes out.
the thing about that is there is a new generation of gpu's coming out and they should prove to be much more powerful. the high end gpu's will be really expensive still but it will knock the prices down on 980(ti) and the fury(x) nano. give the developers more gpu grunt and they will use it.
 

tctuner1

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the thing about that is there is a new generation of gpu's coming out and they should prove to be much more powerful. the high end gpu's will be really expensive still but it will knock the prices down on 980(ti) and the fury(x) nano. give the developers more gpu grunt and they will use it.
Normally I am the type to wait, but I already received Fallout 4 as a gift for Christmas and have not touched it. I also do not want to wait months for the new ones. If it was say sometime in March I would be willing to wait, but not 5-6mo.

GTX 970 is the way to go here. They can be had around 300 bucks. Pair that with a decent 500-600 watt PSU. This one isn't bad: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139028
The GTX970 and AMD R9 390 are on my "want" list. I just wanted to make sure I was not over doing it. If I do not need to spend the extra $100 or so on these cards I would rather not.
 
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Normally I am the type to wait, but I already received Fallout 4 as a gift for Christmas and have not touched it. I also do not want to wait months for the new ones. If it was say sometime in March I would be willing to wait, but not 5-6mo.


The GTX970 and AMD R9 390 are on my "want" list. I just wanted to make sure I was not over doing it. If I do not need to spend the extra $100 or so on these cards I would rather not.
the 970 is def better at 1080p than the 390.. you can spend less and go with even a 2gb 960 or 380 if your fine with high textures instead of ultra.
 
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the 970 is def better at 1080p than the 390.. you can spend less and go with even a 2gb 960 or 380 if your fine with high textures instead of ultra.

In whose review is the 390 beaten by a 970 at 1080P?

 
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The GTX970 and AMD R9 390 are on my "want" list. I just wanted to make sure I was not over doing it. If I do not need to spend the extra $100 or so on these cards I would rather not.

The XPS 8500 has a 16A rail for the PCI express connectors. Dell shipped them with a 7870. You could run a GTX 970 no problem. The 390 would require an upgraded power supply.

The 970 should be a solid card for another 4 years. Heck, my 7950 is a 4 year old design now.
 
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In whose review is the 390 beaten by a 970 at 1080P?

maybe i was thinking before they skipped like 20 driver versions and fixed the overhead.. im just gonna have some more wine and its 4:20 here lol
 

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Get a R9 390. The 390 has more Ram and is maybe better suited to DX12 as well. You want a graphics card for 4 years, that basically makes the R9 390 the better choice, because the GTX 970 only has 3.5 GB of Ram. Ram is always important on the long run.

I recommend Sapphire / MSI / Asus.
 

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970 because PSU, so basically what everyone is saying.
 
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tctuner1

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Get a R9 390. The 390 has more Ram and is maybe better suited to DX12 as well. You want a graphics card for 4 years, that basically makes the R9 390 the better choice, because the GTX 970 only has 3.5 GB of Ram. Ram is always important on the long run.

I recommend Sapphire / MSI / Asus.
So you think the R9 390 will last longer than the GTX 970 in terms of being able to keep AAA games at medium to high settings due to having more RAM?

970 because PSU, so basically what everyone is saying.
So if I went with the GTX 970 I would not need to upgrade the PSU is what you are saying?
 

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So you think the R9 390 will last longer than the GTX 970 in terms of being able to keep AAA games at medium to high settings due to having more RAM?

It isn't even a question. The R9 390 already beats the 970, adding more textures is only going to widen that lead.
 

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So you think the R9 390 will last longer than the GTX 970 in terms of being able to keep AAA games at medium to high settings due to having more RAM?


So if I went with the GTX 970 I would not need to upgrade the PSU is what you are saying?
Yes (and not only because of the Ram, but because of its pure graphics power), but if you need to buy a new PSU for the 390, it's up to you and how much money you are willing to spend.
 
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